A Duet
by Jemimah Puddleduck
Summary: Marinette auditions for a youth orchestra and is delighted to find herself seated next to Adrien Agreste, the famous child model. She falls head over heels for Adrien, while Adrien finds himself enraptured by a mysterious masked violinist who plays at a café. Donning a costume, he sets out to win her heart, while Marinette attempts to get to know Adrien better. AU
1. The Vice-Principal and her Concertmaster

**Hi everyone!**

 **I'm totally loving the responses I've received from my other story, so I'm trying a new one!**

 **Please let me know what you think, and if you have any suggestions, ideas or whatever, because I would love to hear from you! This story is AU and combines some of my passions. Yeah, I was in The West Australian Youth Orchestra and it was amazing. Never made it to first desk, but I did make it to second! The characters in this are aged up.**

 **Thanks again!**

 **~Jemimah**

Marinette stepped into the auditorium cautiously, amidst the bustle of other students. She clutched her violin case tightly, feeling the butterflies in her stomach flutter more and more as she hurried down the to the stage. All the other children around her hurried to find a spot around the stage to unpack their instruments, but the chairs and music stands set out in the usual orchestral pattern remained empty. As Marinette moved to find a place to unpack her violin, a boy with red hair hurried past her, almost hitting her with his trumpet. She squeaked and ducked in surprise.

"Nice going Nathaniel!" a voice called tauntingly, and several people laughed cruelly.

The boy, Nathaniel, she assumed, flushed red and apologised.

"I'm sorry. I'm really worried and my brain isn't functioning properly." He laughed nervously, scratching the back of his neck, and she smiled shyly at him.

"It's okay," Marinette assured him, thinking perhaps she could make at least one friend. "I'm freaking out too."

The boy smiled and held out his free hand, clutching the gold trumpet tightly with the other.

"I'm Nathaniel," he said, and she took in hand, "Although I'm guessing you already heard that," he said, glancing in the direction the taunting voice had come from.

"I'm Marinette," Marinette said cheerfully, glad to have met someone. He held her hand for a little longer than necessary, looking deep into her brilliant blue eyes. Marinette jerked her hand away awkwardly.

"I'm gonna go unpack now," she said, in a voice unnecessarily loud. Nathaniel jerked too, realising his mistake.

"Yeah, sorry, I'll leave you to it!" he said grinning awkwardly, and Marinette smiled back, all the tension gone.

"Could all the players please gather in front of the stage area!" a booming voice called, and Marinette hurried to stand next to Nathaniel, violin in hand. There were many children there, all holding various instruments. A tall man stood on the stage, grinning broadly at them. He spoke again as the children stilled and became quiet.

"I am honoured to see you all today, and I hope you will all enjoy your time playing in the Youth Symphony Orchestra of France! Now, I know you're all very nervous to find out your playing positions, so please listen closely as I go through the seating positions. We will start with the percussion and work our way along. Are you ready?"

"Yes..." the children chorused together.

"I can't hear you! I said, are you ready?" the man asked again, and this time there was more enthusiasm in the shout.

"Yes!"

"Righty ho!" the man said joyfully, and began to read off a list he held in one large hand. "Lily Bergious, you are in desk twelve! Matthew Hindmean, you are in..." Marinette zoned out, the butterflies becoming worse, although she hadn't thought it possible. For today, they were being chosen for the Youth Symphony Orchestra. A place she had dreamed of, and a place she'd worked so hard to get to. And now, she was here. But everyone was nervous. No one knew where they would be seated. And you were seated according to your skill level. So if you were the worst violinist, you would be seated at the back of the Second Violins, and if you were the best, you were seated at the first desk in the First Violins. Not that there was a worst violinist. All the children in this orchestra were the best of the best in Paris. The children were seated in pairs, with the best violinist of the pairs closest to the audience. Each pair was given a number, and that became their desk number. For example, the first two children in the Firsts became desk one, the pair behind them was desk two, and so on. Once you were given your place, you sat there for the whole year. And if you auditioned again for the orchestra next year, you would probably move a up a desk or two, depending on how much you'd improved.

Marinette felt herself beginning to tense up as the last of the violas were called, and the man began to call the second violins. She expected to be perhaps in the middle of seconds, maybe even a little closer to the front if some people hadn't turned up. Then she shook her head. Who wouldn't turn up for an opportunity like this? The man called name after name, his obvious enjoyment never dying, and child after child climbed up onto the stage to take their seats. She could see Nathaniel sitting stiffly, trumpet held firmly, at the first desk of the trumpets. He must be good, she thought. A girl with black hair and a purple fringe sat next to him, dressed all in black. She sat just as stiffly as Nathaniel, each refusing to make eye contact with each other.

The names continued, and she began to feel worried. Why wasn't her name being called? Was there some mistake, and she didn't have a place? Had they missed her? Did they already call her name and she hadn't heard it? The firsts were being called, and Marinette had half a mind to call her parents and walk away, to cover the mistake and save herself from her embarrassment at not having a place. But still, she stayed. Maybe she could ask the man afterwards if she could have a spot when someone dropped out.

There was hardly anyone left in front of the stage now. Just her and five others. Marinette's heart was in her boots, and she wished the ground would just open up and swallow her. Everyone was looking at them, and there was no way to get away without anyone seeing her. Now she stood, head down, refusing to look at anyone. Then, just as she was about to turn away, she heard the man's voice. "Marinette Dupain-Cheng, first desk!"

Marinette looked up in shock. There was no way. She looked around, seeing only one other person standing with her. She looked up at the stage to see the first desk empty, and the man smiling at her disbelief.

"Marinette! Come on up!" She walked up as if in a dream. She couldn't have. The first desk? No, no way did she belong here. The man grinned at her.

"And the lead violinist is..." the man paused, looking at the last boy left on the ground, and pretended to be surprised. "Oh, well there's only one left, so I guess we'll have to take you then." He grinned at the blond boy, who grinned back easily and winked. "Just kidding. Adrien Agreste is our lead violinist and concertmaster. Now, everyone please give yourselves a hand for making it in!" All the children clapped, and the man stood up on the raised platform in front of the semicircle of children, just as the blond boy, Adrien sat down next to Marinette. He grinned at her.

"Well done," he said, clapping with his violin tucked firmly under his arm. Marinette gazed into his beautiful green eyes. There was no doubt about it. This kid was pretty easy on the eyes, that's for sure.

"Uh um, you thank!" she said, before blushing and trying to correct herself. "I-I I mean, thank you!" she said a little too firmly, looking down at her violin on her lap. "And well done to you too," she said shyly, looking up at him from under her eyelashes. Adrien laughed.

"Thank you, and I hope we have a great year together, Marinette." He turned to face the man, who introduced himself as Mr Arbudle, but was called simply Mr A. Marinette didn't hear a word of it. She was too busy staring wonderingly at Adrien. She'd seen him before somewhere... she frowned, thinking. Wait, it couldn't be, could it? Adrien Agreste. It was! Adrien, the model, child of Gabriel Agreste, the famous fashion designer! His son was incredible. He spoke Chinese, did fencing, played violin and piano with the talent of an angel, modelled for all the best brands and was, in Marinette's eyes, fabulous. I may just have a tiny, weany, little bitty crush, she though. Then her honesty kicked in. Okay, she was head-over-heels for this guy. It had been an amazing day, so far. First, to be selected for the first desk and then to be seated next to this boy who was amazing... she tore her eyes away and forced her gaze to the conductor.

"...Open your files and we'll try the first piece." Hurriedly, Marinette opened the file on the stand between them and her eyes fell on a familiar title. It was Spring, part of the Four Seasons, by Vivaldi! Marinette sighed dreamily. She'd heard it so many times. But here, she would play it with the entire orchestra!

Mr A lifted his baton, and the orchestra came to life. Admittedly, Marinette felt that her sight-reading wasn't bad, but next to her, she could hear Adrien's violin. Not a note out of place. They played the first few pages, then Mr A stopped.

"Now, that wasn't bad, but we have a long way to go. I'd like to get a feel for how well you guys can play jazz. If you'd turn to the third piece..." And so they continued.

About 45 minutes later, Mr A dismissed them all for a twenty minute break, but he stopped Marinette as she rose from her seat. She started anxiously, hoping she wasn't in trouble, but she sighed with relief as she saw Mr A was stopping all of the children in the first desks. He waited till all the other children had left to building to the courtyard before he spoke.

"Thank you all for being part of this orchestra. It is a pleasure to have you all here. Now, as you are all the principals, or vice-principals, of your specific sections, I would strongly encourage you to get to know your sections, and each other. That way, you can lead them properly, and together, the orchestra will be more united. Also, there are several solo parts in a few of the pieces, which you will have to play. Most of them aren't hard, except," he turned to Marinette and Adrien, and she gulped, "The section in Spring. Adrien, are you up to it? You played very well and I believe you are capable."

Adrien nodded. "I certainly will do my best, sir." Mr A nodded, pleased with his response and looked at Marinette.

"Are you up to it?" he asked her, and she squeaked.

"Um me? I though the leader did the solo!" Mr A agreed.

"They do. But it's not so much a solo as it is..." he screwed up his face thinking of the word. "...It's more like a little duet, with the orchestra playing in the background. So Adrien will play the main part, and you will play the supporting part. Yours isn't as hard, but it is still difficult. Are you willing?"

Marinette's palms began to sweat, but she nodded anyway. She was going to play a duet with Adrien! "I would love to try. This has been amazing so far." Mr A smiled at her.

"No need to be nervous. I will be organising sessions for all of you to practise together." He addressed the group. "These will be within normal practise times, and it will give your second desks a chance to improve and lead for a bit. Now, I'll leave you all to get to know each other."

With that, he left, and the children were left alone. They awkwardly looked around at each other before Adrien stood up.

"Well I don't know about you guys, but I'm getting stiff from sitting in the same position. Why don't we move over there?" he pointed to a small area, a little cut off from the larger auditorium, with a curtain that could be drawn across to shield it from the large room. The children murmured their agreement and they all moved off the stage, sitting in a circle in the little room. Adrien took the lead once again, after all, he was the concertmaster, second only to the conductor.

"So... I'm Adrien, and I'm the principal of the first violins." He turned to Marinette and she realised it was her turn, her fears dissipating as she looked into his eyes.

"Oh, I'm Marinette and I'm the vice-principal," she said, turning to the girl on her left. Her fears appeared once again as the blond girl on his left spoke.

"Hello, I'm Chloe. I am the principal of the Seconds, and this is Sabrina, my assistant. I expect you to all work hard, so that my orchestra will be the best of the best." The redhead girl next to her, Sabrina, nodded in agreement.

"Chloe is the best. She almost owns the orchestra because her father is the mayor, and he owns everything, including the orchestra, so she practically owns it."

A girl with brown hair dyed red at the tips rolled her eyes. "Chloe, just because he's the mayor doesn't mean he owns everything."

Chloe sat up straight. "How dare you!" she spat. "I am Chloe!" The girl raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah, I know. You've only said that three times."

Adrien held up his hand. "Guys, please." He gestured to the boy sitting next to Sabrina. "Please go on." Inwardly he groaned. He could see there would be trouble with Chloe.

The boy, barely fitting on the chair introduced himself. "I'm Kim, and I'm a viola."

He gestured to the shy boy next to him. "I-I'm Max, and I'm also a viola." Max pushed up his glasses with a determined expression. Marinette was glad she wasn't the only one who seemed nervous.

The girl seemed pretty confident. She wore glasses and had brown hair with red tips.

"I'm Alya and I'm on the cello." She turned to the boy next to her. He had dark skin and had ear-buds hanging out of his shirt. He sat casually, one leg off the side of the chair, and his arm hooked over the backrest. He waved a hand.

"Hey dudes. I'm Nino and I'm under Alya so I'll probably be dead by next week." He ducked as she swatted at him. They obviously knew each other.

"I'm Ivan," said then next boy gruffly. "I play double bass." The girl next to him nodded.

"I'm Mylene, and I play bass too." Adrien grinned. He could see them playing bass. They were both stocky, and some how suited to bass. He raised an eyebrow, seeing the adoring look Mylene gave Ivan, and raised the other eyebrow as Ivan returned it. Obviously there was something going on between them.

"I'm Rose," said a blond girl with a pixie cut. She was dressed all in pink and white, and had huge blue eyes. "I play flute." She giggled uncertainly. Marinette had to smile. Rose looked just the type to play the flute.

A tough looking girl with pink hair spoke next. "I'm Alix and I help Rose." She jerked a thumb at Rose, who looked terrified of her.

Nathaniel was next, and Marinette smiled as he looked at her. "I'm Nathaniel, although some of you already know that. I'm on trumpet."

The girl next to him, dressed in black, spoke with absolutely no tone. Her voice was completely emotionless and flat. "I'm Juleka and I help Nathaniel."

Adrien nodded as they all looked at him expectantly. He glanced at his watch.

"So what do you guys want to do? We've got literally five minutes." He looked around, his eyes landing on the shy girl who was his partner. "Marinette, do you know any icebreaker games?" The girl started.

"Um, m-me?" she stuttered, "I-I don't really."

Nino spoke. "Dude, why don't we play 'Honey If You Love Me?'" He grinned as Alya tacked him. He had obviously been expecting her reaction.

"No, there is no way we are playing that!" Alya laughed and frowned at the same time. "No after what happened last time we played that!"

Nino laughed as he climbed back onto his chair.

Adrien grinned. Obviously there was a story behind this. But Chloe stared disdainfully at the two laughing teenagers.

"Well I think that's a great idea." she walked over to Adrien, as sickly sweet smile plastered on her face, and plonked herself down on his lap. She turned to face him, putting an arm around his neck.

"Honey, if you love me," she began, but Adrien pushed her off.

"No Chloe. We aren't playing that." Next to him, he heard Marinette's sigh of relief.

"Hmp." Chloe frowned and stomped her foot like a bratty child. "But I want to, and I own this orchestra so if you don't do what I say-"

But no one ever found out what she would do, because the door to the auditorium was flung open and children began to flow through, chattering noisily and drowning out Chloe's voice. At once, all the principals rose and drew back the curtain, revealing the sea of teenagers taking their places on the stage. Responsibly, they all began to walk over too, but Marinette stopped as a hand grabbed her wrist. She turned back, expecting to see Nathaniel, but to her surprise, it was Adrien.

"Marinette," he said, pulling her back into the curtained area, "Have you played Spring before?" he asked, and she shook her head, wondering where this was going. "Do you want to practise with me? I've played it once before. We can meet after practise is over."

Marinette blushed and looked down. This amazing boy wanted to help her practise! He really was kind.

"I would love to," she said, proud of herself for not stuttering. Adrien smiled.

"I'll see you afterwards then," he grinned, and together they made their way to their seats. Adrien smiled inwardly. He really wanted to get to know Marinette. She seemed really sweet, although she also appeared very shy around him. And they were just practising, he told himself. There was nothing more to it than that. Well... nothing much more, he admitted honestly to himself. After all, he'd only just met her. But she sure did seem lovely.

Marinette was delighted. Adrien, the one and only, was going to meet her afterwards to practise! Just practise, she told herself firmly. Nothing more. He just wants to help you and be nice, so don't get carried away. But she was still buzzing with excitement.

 **And that's all for now! Hope you guys enjoyed it! The next chapter will hopefully be introducing Ladybug and Chat Noir... And I'm looking forward to it!**

 **Please review (It would totally make my day if you did!) and tell me what you think and what you would like to see in the next chapter :)**

 **P.S. Don't you guys think that Rose is so perfect on flute?! Just imagining her playing flute feels right!**


	2. A Girl with her Violin

**I am back! And hopefully with some fluff between Adrien and Marinette! Also the chapter were Ladybug is introduced! *Cue mental dance party* Or not so mental if you read the story… !**

 **Okay dokey! On with the story!**

Marinette closed her eyes and tried to let the music take her. Of course, it's not easy to concentrate on anything when someone as incredible as Adrien was playing with you, she thought, as she turned the page and concentrated on the music before her.

The auditorium was empty, and all the chairs had been packed away, save for the two they were using, and the stand in front of them. The stage seemed so vast without anyone else playing on it. They finished the piece together and Adrien turned to her.

"That was good! You changed your bowing and you didn't stumble as much in the section with the shift!" Marinette glowed at the praise.

"Thank you," she said shyly.

Adrien smiled, before glancing at his watch. "I have to get going. My father wants me to appear at a party, so I have to go be a polite and dutiful son." He was smiling and joking, but Marinette could hear the sadness behind his voice. She touched his shoulder sympathetically, and their eyes met, hers conveying all her sadness and compassion for him, and his conveying all his sadness at his unloved lifestyle. Marinette sighed.

"It's not so bad," Adrien told her as they moved to pack away their instruments. "This party is actually at a cafe, so that's a little different. It is a fancy cafe admittedly, or so I've been told. We'll all be sitting down for most of the party, I believe, so hopefully I won't have to talk to everyone."

Marinette smiled. "If you ever need a break, just tell you dad you have plans with me."

Adrien shook his head, acknowledging her kindness but explaining that everything had to be scheduled. He couldn't just 'have plans' as she put it. Marinette nodded, understanding. They packed the chairs away, still talking and walked up the stairs. Marinette paused as they reached the exit.

"See you next week!" she said cheerily. "And thanks again for practising with me."

Adrien smiled. "I'm looking forward to it already."

"I hope the meeting at the cafe goes okay," she said simply.

Adrien shrugged. "I'm sure it'll go fine. Thanks."

Marinette seemed really sweet, he though. He was glad he was able to make a friend, even on his first day. Being home-schooled didn't really give him the opportunity to mix with lots of children so he had been a little nervous. When his teacher had suggested it to him, Adrien had initially been very reluctant, but upon hearing that his teacher, Mr. A, was the conductor, he had agreed. Mr A had been asking him to join for some years, confident that he would make a very good first violinist, but on audition day, Adrien had blown him away with a song sweet enough to make a statue cry. Although he had been reluctant to make his own student the concertmaster, the committee had been horrified that he was not going to make Adrien the first violinist. As his assistant had put it, "Discrimination works both ways. You can discriminate other students with unfair treatment of your own student, or you can discriminate against your own student by unfairly positioning them lower than they deserve." So Adrien had been given his position, although it had been a close run against another incredible violinist, Marinette Dupin-Cheng. Mr A was sure that the song she had performed was one of her own. He was also convinced she had no idea how brilliant she was. Marinette was so humble, always considering others rather than herself. She would make a lovely desk partner for Adrien, he had decided. He knew Marinette would support Adrien and encourage him, but also make a very sweet friend. Mr A knew Adrien was anxious to make some real friends and Marinette would be perfect.

Adrien, unaware of his teachers thoughts, only knowing that Marinette was a very kind girl, watched her walk away, violin case in hand. He turned away and headed towards his house, a cold, empty place compared to the lively room he had just been in. At least he would hopefully see someone his age tonight, at the party.

What Adrien expected from the party was a boring, lifeless place, where the only noise was people talking seriously, and everyone being stiff and formal. What he didn't expect was a cheery bustling cafe, with live music, cheerful chatter and happy faces.

As he sat down, he turned to his father, who was looking about him with interest.

"Father, why are we in this place?" he asked.

Gabriel turned to him. "Why? Don't you like it?"

Adrien hurried to assure him. "No, no, I love it. I think it's great, but we don't usually attend such places."

Gabriel nodded. "I am looking into a fashion line with more colour and flair. Something that is different from my usual formal style. I though this would be a good place for inspiration."

Adrien was surprised to say the least. His father had never talked about needing inspiration before. He was about to say so when his father answered his unspoken question.

"I actually have the line almost developed, but considering that your age group is the target audience, I thought it would be good to have several children of your age view the pieces. And since they may not have been comfortable in a ballroom, I decided that this would be the best place."

Adrien nodded. It made sense. His father wouldn't have wanted to go to a place like this, but it was for his guests. He wondered if he would know any of the children coming. As if reading his mind, his father spoke again.

"There will be five children coming. One of them is the mayor's daughter, who is in the orchestra you were accepted into. Her name is Ch-"

"Chloe," Adrien completed evenly. His face remained blank. "I do know her."

Gabriel looked down at him. "I take it you do not like her. In future I will not invite people of your age." Adrien winced, the words taken as they were intended.

"No Father, I don't mean to be ungrateful, but Chloe is different. You'll understand when you see her. She's really, well, she's-"

The door opened and Adrien abruptly stopped. The mayor and Chloe walked in, and were directed to their table. Chloe immediately sat down next to him, inching closer and grabbing his arm.

"Hi Adrikins! I'm going to sit next to _you_!" she said, leaning towards him and wrapping her arm around his neck, peppering his face with kisses. He leaned back.

"Hi Chloe," he replied, and glanced up as his father. _See what I mean?_ His eyes said, and Gabriel intervened.

"Chloe, we have seating arrangements already established. You will be seated next to your father." His tone brooked that there would be no disagreements, and Chloe frowned, annoyed. She sulkily flounced over to her father, as he and Gabriel began to discuss the fashion line.

Gradually the other children arrived, and Adrien was disappointed to find they were all like Chloe. Aside from polite conversation, he didn't pursue any kind of friendship. The meal had just been finished when suddenly, the clear and beautiful tone of a violin rang out through the cafe. Adrien looked up, surprised, to see standing on a raised platform directly across from him, was a violinist.

A petite young girl, looking to be about 16 or 17, around his age, stood in the bright spotlight. She was dressed in a beautiful scarlet dress with a sweetheart top, and a sash was tied in a bow around her waist. The dress puffed outwards at the waist, and flowed gently to knee level. Red chiffon covered the skirt, lightly dotted with black dots. In fact, when he looked closely, the whole dress was covered in light dots. _She must really like ladybugs_ , he thought, for that was immediately what came to mind. She had dark hair, tied in two tails with red ribbons, the same coloured ribbon that was tied in a bow around the scroll of her violin. Her face was partly covered by a mask, red with the ever present black spots. Her eyes were closed, passion written all over her beautiful face.

He watched her, transfixed, as her bow soared across the strings, and the music flowed, capturing him as never before. Sure, he was good at violin, but this girl had such passion. Adrien had to meet her. She was incredible. The melody that sang in his ears was one he'd never heard before. He was sure it was an original. All of a sudden, he wanted to dance and sing, to the beautiful tune floating out into the night. Adrien had done dancing lessons before, but now he truly wanted to dance. If only he had his violin with him, he could play along to the beautiful melody. As her song ended, she opened her eyes and stared straight at him. Adrien's breath caught in his throat. Her eyes were a stunning bluebell blue, so clear and bright. The girl was exquisite. He frowned for a moment. _I'm sure I've seen those eyes somewhere before,_ he thought, puzzled. But he was drawn back to the girl, unable to think of anything else. He considered waving at her, before he realised she couldn't actually see him. She was in a bright spotlight, and he was in shadow. Adrien sighed, both with wonder and disappointment.

"Adrien, that is not a flattering look," his father's voice cut through his thoughts.

He looked up at his father, and realised his mouth was hanging open. He closed it immediately. How embarrassing. Caught staring at a girl.

"I'm sorry Father, but don't you think her playing was amazing?" he asked, undaunted.

Gabriel nodded. "She was certainly very talented. Perhaps I may have her play at our next gathering."

"Yes!" Adrien cried, then lowered his voice as the children at his table turned towards him from the clothing they were examining. "Yes Father, I think that would be wonderful. The gathering would be more comfortable and more entertained with a live performer. Would you like me to get her name?"

Gabriel shook his head. "I can get her name easily enough." Then, seeing Adrien's obvious disappointment, he sighed. "Would you like to speak with her?" Gabriel felt somewhat at fault for Chloe's behaviour towards his son, and decided he would allow Adrien to be excused.

"Yes Father, I would love to," Adrien replied, trying not to let too much eagerness into his voice and failing miserably.

Gabriel's mouth twitched into a small smile, but it was lost on Adrien. "You may be excused."

"Thank you!" Adrien leapt up from the table and walked quickly across the cafe towards the door that the girl had vanished through. The other teens at the table glanced up curiously, but thought nothing of it.

Adrien hesitantly opened the door and peered though. It opened into a hallway, and he heard hurried footsteps ahead of him. He walked in, cautious but curious. The footsteps stopped, then increased in pace. Adrien followed them, speeding up. He turned the corner and kept going, following the footsteps. Doors passed on either side, some with labels, such as "Storage Cupboard" and others unlabelled.

He passed a room that was obviously a pantry, if his nose was anything to go by. The footsteps stopped, a door was opened and shut, and the sound of the violin was heard again, softer this time.

Adrien followed the sound till he came to a door, and touched the handle, preparing to open it. But as he began to turn it, the music swelled and filled him, and he closed his eyes. As if in a dream, he felt his hands come to first position, then, his body moving all on its own, he began to dance. Adrien danced as he'd never danced before. The cold, lifeless hallway was transformed into a warm, lively place as the music flowed and swirled, his feet moving gracefully. Time stood still. The two teenagers, each in their own world, and yet together. After a few minutes, the song gradually stopped and Adrien's dancing ceased. How he wished for his violin at that moment! If only he could play a tune or two with the mysterious girl. But still joy filled him, and he placed his hand again on the door handle, knocking quietly.

A sharp intake of breath was heard, then timidly, a voice called "Come in," and, eagerly, Adrien opened the door. He hadn't even seen the girl when he heard her voice, laced with confusion.

"Adrien?"

 **And that is all for now! Until the next chapter... I can't wait!**

 **Please tell me what you think, I'm dying to know if you liked it, because I really worked hard on this one!**

 **You have no idea how much it means to me… that people actually take time out of their days to READ MY STORIES? WHAT!? So seriously, thank you from the bottom of my heart 3**

 **~Jem**


	3. One Introduction

Adrien glanced around the small room eager but confused. How did this mysterious girl know who he was? The room was covered in loose papers, all with music written on them in pencil. Files of music lay haphazardly around and in the midst of them all sat the girl. Her violin was in her hands and she cradled it like it was a newborn baby. Adrien's breath caught in his throat again as he saw her. Her graceful fingers rested on the violin and she seemed uncertain as she looked at him, a little warily.

Adrien smiled at her, trying to appear as least threatening as possible and held out his hand politely. "It seems that although you know who I am, I don't know who you are. But I would very much like to make the acquaintance of someone who plays the violin as exquisitely as yourself."

The girl stared at him for a moment, before the air was filled with a tinkling laugh. Adrien frowned slightly as she leaned back in her chair, her eyes shut as she laughed merrily. What had he done wrong? The girl gradually stopped laughing and took his hand, shaking it softly, still smiling to herself.

"I'm sorry Adrien, you just sounded so formal and proper I just couldn't help myself," the bluenette said as she gently released his hand. Adrien looked into her bluebelle eyes and felt himself swaying slightly. He shook his head to clear it and smiled.

"Sorry. I guess I'm just used to introducing myself to adults and that's what they expect from someone like me." Adrien felt his face warm slightly as he shyly looked away.

Wait. Why was he feeling shy? His face was now red and he frowned confusedly. _Get a hold of yourself, Agreste_! He chided himself. But there was no doubt about it. Adrien didn't even know her name and he was already falling for her.

The girl stood up and smiled. "Well, as much as I would love to stay and chat, I'm afraid I have to go home. This must seem very rude of me, with you only just arriving but I have to help my parents with some stuff."

"You live at home?" Adrien couldn't help but ask.

"Yeah," the girl said, glancing up at him as she began to pack away her violin. "I'm only seventeen."

"Me too!" Adrien grinned at her. "I'm afraid I didn't catch your name?" he said slyly.

The girl raised an eyebrow. "That's because I didn't give it. I work anonymously. Sorry Adrien, but here my name is Ladybug." She shrugged, his disappointment clearly evident. "That's the way things work here. The cafe hires aspiring musicians and dancers to help them start a career. But in case the musician is terrible, they don't give out their names. That way at least if they can't make music their career they can still pursue something else without anyone holding them back by pointing out their past failure."

Adrien smiled. It made sense but... "Surely now that you are established as a good musician you are allowed to reveal your identity?" he asked curiously. But Ladybug shook her head.

"Sorry. I'm actually not established anyway. This is only my second night here. Hopefully I'll be able to play more once people begin voting for me."

"Voting for you?" Adrien asked curiously and Ladybug collected her music. "What do you mean?"

Ladybug nodded in the direction of the cafe. "Didn't you see the board? It has the names of all the performers on it. People can vote for their favourite musician of the night by putting a slip of paper in that performers box. At the end of the fortnight, the performer with the least amount of votes has to leave and the person with the most goes on the Star board. That means they have a regular position and performance time each week as well as on Fridays, where if they stop getting a large number of votes they stop having their extra performance time."

Adrien nodded slowly. "That makes sense. How are you going with votes? If you don't mind me asking that is," he added hastily, fearing she may prefer to keep it a secret. But she shook her head.

"I'm going fine! But I've only been here for one night so that could change very quickly. Besides, most people like dancers better," she added sadly. "I don't think they like my music as much as they like listening to popular music and watching people dance to that." Adrien shook his head. "No your music is incredible!" he exclaimed. "It's your work, isn't it?"

She nodded, gesturing to all the papers strewn around. "Yes. They all have words too but it's pretty hard to play and sing at the same time." Ladybug giggled and he smiled, picking up a random sheet by his foot. Glancing at the words, he began to hum the tune, tapping his foot.

"Do you like it?" Ladybug asked eagerly as she began to hoist her bags over her arm. Adrien closed his eyes and breathed in. She was so talented. Sure, he could probably play better than her but there was no way he could write his own music.

"It's beautiful," he said as he opened his eyes, staring straight into hers. _You're beautiful,_ he said to himself as she smiled happily, elated by his words.

"I'm so glad you like it," Ladybug said shyly as he gave the music back to her. "Hopefully I will be able to write music and play here for a while. I love it in this little cafe."

"Yeah," Adrien said as he followed her out of the room. Closing the door behind them he noticed the name on the door.

 _Ladybug_ , it read and he glanced around at the other doors. They all carried names of the same sort of style. Ladybug saw his glance and smiled. "Those are my co-workers rooms. I'm down at the end here because there was only one more room left and it was empty. Usually two people share but since there's an uneven number of us I get one to myself." She was about to say more when a girl strutted down the hall towards them. She smirked at Ladybug and raised an eyebrow at Adrien. The girl seemed to be dressed as a fox and held a long flute.

"Good evening Ladybug," she said disdainfully. "And is this a new performer? Such a pleasure to meet you," she said, flirtation heavy in her voice. She reached out and touched his shoulder, running her hand down his chest. "I'm Volpina. And you are?"

Adrien brushed her hand away. "I'm not a performer. I don't work here. I was just seeing Ladybug off, so excuse us." Adrien moved past, leaving her to stare after them.

"Sorry about that," Ladybug said as they moved out of earshot. "Some of the people here are..." she trailed off as she searched for a word. "Interesting," Ladybug concluded diplomatically. Adrien shrugged as two more people passed them. Ladybug greeted them and named them both once they had moved on, chatting together. "Those two have named themselves "L'hiver and la Autumne," or Winter and Autumn. They're a duo and play duets together. We do have several pairs here but they all actually met working here individually. Some dance together and some sing or play. Group acts always to very well."

Ladybug reached the end of the corridor and smiled. "Here we say goodbye Adrien. Maybe you'll visit Akuma again?" she asked.

"Akuma?" Adrien frowned.

"It's the name of the cafe, silly," Ladybug giggled.

"Oh sorry, yes of course I'd love to come again." He grinned, then remembered something. "Ladybug, I actually came here to ask if you would perform at one of the event hosted by my father." Ladybug's eyes widened.

"Seriously? I would love to!" she squealed and Adrien laughed. "Oh, here's one of my cards," she said, handing him a spotted red card. He smiled.

"Thank you. I'm sure my father will contact you as soon as he can. Have a good evening!" he said as Ladybug turned away.

"You too!" she said, with one last smile before she vanished into the night.  
"I'll see you again!" he called after her and the wind faintly brought her response back to him.

"Sooner than you think!" came her reply. Adrien frowned. _What was that supposed to mean?_


	4. Chat Noir and Ladybug

p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;"Adrien flopped tiredly on to his bed. It had been a long evening, both with orchestra practice and the evening dinner at Akuma but he had enjoyed it all. With meeting Ladybug and being given the position of concertmaster, he was pretty happy. The other children at orchestra seemed nice, especially Marinette, Alya and Nino. Perhaps he could get to know them a little better as the year progressed. And Ladybug... he sighed. Her music was so beautiful. She seemed like such a lovely girl. He slipped the card out of his pocket and stared at it. Hmm. No address, just a phone number, a description of her services and her name. Adrien almost wanted to text her but he knew that wasn't what he got the number for. He father would be extremely unimpressed by his unprofessionalism. Ladybug's last words to him rang out inside his head. "emSooner than you think."/em/span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;"Perhaps she was someone from his modelling shoots. He shook his head, too tired to even think about it. How could he get to know her... Adrien wondered, then the tiredness suddenly drained from his body./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;"Of course! He could get a job at Akuma! His evenings were usually free after about 8:30 on weekdays so it would be easy to sneak out in the big, empty house. But what would he do? He could play the violin too! Sure, he wouldn't be as good as Ladybug; after all, she played her own songs and he would just be performing songs written by others, but he was in it to get to know Ladybug, not earn money! It would be good practise for him too, to play in front of people and be judged accordingly. He could get pointers from other musicians as well!/span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;"Adrien leapt to his feet excitedly and ran to his wardrobe. Now he needed a costume. Something easy to move in, perhaps something like Ladybugs... he recalled the other costumes of the performers and nodded. He would go with an animal theme too. Maybe something connected to Ladybug. Ladybug and Black Beetle? He thought, catching sight of a black suit. No. But maybe he could use the black suit for something else! Quickly pulling it on, Adrien stretched himself experimentally. Yes, this would certainly do. It was skin tight and made completely of black leather. He frowned. Which shoot did he wear this in? It was certainly unusual. Then he remembered. It was a promotion for Halloween. He had been dressed as a para-glider or something. But now Adrien needed to spice it up a little. Glancing around he saw his belt rack. Fingering a black belt with a silver buckle, he nodded and slid it around his waist, forming a tail. After doing some digging in the back of his drawers he found a pair of black cat ears and a golden bell. Adrien grinned excitedly as he placed the ears on his head and tied the bell to the top of the zip under his chin. Standing in front of the mirror he couldn't help but admit he looked good. Now for a name. Something to do with cats. Maybe a pun? Cat-astrophy? No. Meow-verlous? Nope, that didn't work either. He studied the belt. Black. The Black Cat? Nope, that was boring. But maybe he was onto something! Adrien slid into his chair in front of his giant computer and with a couple of clicks was at google translate. Black Cat... he typed, then selected Italian, deciding to go for the romantic languages. No, he didn't like Italian. How about French? Chat Noir. Oooh... that was good. Adrien swaggered over to the mirror again./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;""Good evening," he purred to his reflection before he started as Natalie knocked on his bedroom door./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;""Adrien?" she called. "Are you ready for dinner? I've brought you a list of your father's arrangements for tomorrow." Adrien glanced around, panicked. There was no time to get changed./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;""Um, sure just leave it outside! I'll be down in a minute!" he called quickly, hoping his voice didn't sound to strained as he frantically grabbed his clothes, pulling them on as fast as he could. There was a pause before Natalie responded./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;""O-okay then," she said uncertainly. "Your dinner is getting cold."/span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;""Sure, I'll be down in a tick!" he yelled, pulling his T-shirt over his head. He combed his fingers through his hair and straightened his shirt before opening his door. He grinned sheepishly at Natalie./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;""Sorry. I'm just organising some stuff," he said. "I'm going to have to practice my violin this evening. So perhaps I could have dinner up here?"/span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;""I-I Of course," Natalie stammered. "I will have it sent up directly." With that, she vanished and Adrien retreated into his room. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and typed in the number for Akuma, hitting dial as soon as Natalie left his dinner on his table./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;""Hello, this Akuma, Rachel speaking! How can I help you today?" Adrien heard the cheery voice of a worker answer./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;""Good evening Rachel," he replied smoothly, "I'm a musician looking for a position and I was wondering if you possibly had a spot for me?"/span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;" /span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;"The conversation continued and Adrien's dinner was stone cold by the time he finally finished. But he was in. Next week, he would be playing at Akuma right before Ladybug./span/p  
p class="Standard" style="text-align: center;"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;"~/span/p  
p class="Standard" style="text-align: left;"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;"Marinette laughed as Nathaniel cracked another joke, his hand casually dropping to her shoulder as he laughed with her. It was Friday again and she was glad to be fitting in with her other orchestra members. Nathaniel seemed like such a nice boy and he was going out of his way to talk to her. She looked around and spotted Alya and Nino quietly talking in their seats, waiting for practise to start./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;""Alya!" Marinette called, grinning. She and Alya had talked before Nino had arrived but Alya had excused herself as soon as he'd turned up. Nino seemed to be just as eager to see her as she had been to see him so Marinette suspected something was going on between them, whether they knew it or not./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;""Huh?" Alya looked up and met Marinette's eyes. Marinette smiled sweetly and walked over to them, Nathaniel following./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;""Did you guys get the memo from Mr. A?" she asked and Nino nodded./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;""Sure did!" he replied. "It was cool of him to get us all together. Are you gonna stay late with us to practise?"/span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;"Marinette glanced at Nathaniel and they both nodded. "I really want to get than piece down pat," Marinette said. "I seriously need to work on the fingering during that fourth shift."/span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;""How late can you stay?" Alya wanted to know. "We were thinking of going out to get something to eat after, at a place called Akuma. Heard of it? It's really cool!"/span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;"Marinette's eyes widened. "Um, no, sorry, I-I I don't think so, IhavetohelpmyparentswithsomestuffsoyeahsorryIcan't," she finished in a rush, her face flushing and her hands suddenly clammy. Tonight she would be playing there and she certainly didn't want to be recognised. Perhaps she would put on a little extra make-up tonight just in case they were there when she played. Ladybug was a strict secret. She had dreamed of playing her music to people and Akuma was the perfect place. Marinette didn't want to blow this chance./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;""Hey guys!" a cheerful voice called and Marinette jumped as a hand was laid on her shoulder. It took a second for her to realise it was Adrien and she smiled adoringly up at him, before remembering their meeting at Akuma. She smiled secretly to herself. To have someone like him say he loved her music was a big deal for her. Hopefully he would join the others tonight and see her play again! Marinette shook her head out of the clouds and her heart sank again as Adrien answered the question she hadn't even heard./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;""Sorry I have to leave early tonight. I can stay an extra 20 minutes but that's about it." He spread his hands apologetically. "But Akuma's great! They have amazing performers! Last time I went they had a girl playing her own music. Ladybug was her name and she was amazing!" he gushed. "I've heard that there's going to be a new performer tonight too," he said slyly. Marinette pricked up her ears. A new performer? She hadn't heard about this yet. Adrien continued. "Yeah his name in Chat Noir and he's a violinist too! Apparently he's really good!"/span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;"Marinette sighed inwardly. Another violinist. She would get kicked out for sure. Maybe she could perform on the streets. It wouldn't pay as well but at least she could get money. But her attention was captured again as Mr A stepped onto the stage./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;""We're about to start so everyone in position!" he called and children shuffled to their seats. "We're starting with Spring again so if you could please turn to that..."/span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;" /span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;"Marinette skipped out of the hall, violin in hand and bag under her arm. She turned, responding to the happy farewells of her friends and ran to the bathrooms. There was more than enough time to change into her Ladybug costume and get to Akuma in time to see the new performer Adrien had talked about but she wanted to be sure she would see him. Marinette wasn't one to scorn competition but she liked to know what she was up against. After quickly changing she stood in front of the mirror, adjusting her mask before she ran out, ready to walk the ten minutes to Akuma when she collided hard with something appearing in her path. She sat down heavily, the her breath escaping her with a sharp whoosh. The thing she had run into gave a startled yelp and then a black gloved hand was held out to her./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;""Ladybug?" a familiar voice asked, and she looked up. A blond boy wearing a black mask hovered anxiously over her. "Are you okay?" he asked, and Marinette frowned as she tried to place his voice. She was sure she'd heard it before but she couldn't think where./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;""Oh, I'm fine," she said, accepting his hand as he gently pulled her to her feet./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;""Falling for me already?" the boy asked teasingly. Ladybug raised an eyebrow at that./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;""Don't be so sure, kitten. I may be clumsy but I don't go running into people I like."/span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;""I'm sorry, I never introduced myself. I'm Chat Noir and I'm going to be performing at Akuma tonight! I've heard about you and I can't wait to hear you play!"/span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;"Ladybug smiled. That explained the cat costume. But the boy frowned./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;""What are you doing here? Isn't this the practise hall for the orchestral students only?"/span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;"Ladybug shrugged. "Well, yeah, but what about you?"/span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;""I'm in the orchestra," he replied flatly, with a hint of a smile./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;"Ladybug rolled her eyes. "Well I suppose now you've said that, now wouldn't be a good time to say I am too?"/span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;"Chat Noir stared at her for a second, his mind racing. Who played as well as Ladybug in the orchestra? No one. She could be disguising her skills, he thought wryly. At least that was a very big clue as to who she was./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;""Are you going to stand here all day or do you want to play at Akuma?" Ladybug cut into his thoughts./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;""But of course, my lady. If I may?" Chat Noir asked, offering her his arm. Ladybug snorted and rolled her eyes but she took his arm anyway, hiding a smile. He did seem very sweet.../span/p  
p class="Standard" style="text-align: center;"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;"~/span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;""Yeah Ladybug!" Alya cheered as Ladybug bowed to the audience. Her music had been beautiful and Alya was impressed. As the musician stepped off the stage and began to walk towards the stage door Alya turned to her friends./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;""I wish Marinette and Adrien had been here to see her! She's incredible!"/span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;"Marinette heard the comment just as she left the room and she smiled to herself. Hopefully she could count on Alya's vote before they were numbered tonight. She pushed open her door and sighed as Chat Noir guiltily looked up from the small piano where he was playing./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;""Chat Noir, why are you playing my music?" she asked tiredly./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;""I'm sorry my Lady, I was just curious to see what you wrote. And I am not disappointed. It is indeed superb!" He began to play again, this time singing along to the words of the tinkling tune./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;"Ladybug sat and listened. To tell the truth, she had been about to stop him but his voice was incredible. Rich and mellow, the music swelled throughout the tiny room and filled the hallway. Other performers stopped to listen before continuing in their busy schedules. But Ladybug continued to sit, spellbound as she listened to her music being played as she'd never thought possible. Gradually, Chat stopped playing, his fingers sliding off the piano as he turned to face her./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;""Ladybug," he began, "I love your music. I think we could make a really good team! Would you, um, perhaps be interested in, uh, well, what I'm trying to say is, can we, um, perform to- ahem, together?" He ended in a squeak, looking up at her nervously. Ladybug raised an eyebrow./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;""I'm tempted to ask you to repeat that sentence but I fear we'll be here all day and we won't have time for our first practise." Her face remained solemn as she ended and Chat Noir visibly drooped before her last few words clicked /"So you'll do it?" Ladybug nodded, her face breaking into a smile./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;""Of course kitty! You are very talented. You sing, you dance, you play the piano and the violin and you do seem like a nice guy so... yeah, it would be great to be a duo performance. Besides," she teased as Chat Noir cheered happily, "I'm good luck so I suppose I'd need a balance to even things out for everyone else!"/span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;"Chat Noir stopped cheering and frowned as he realised what she was saying. "Milady, are you suggesting that I will bring you bad luck? I would never dream of such a thing!"/span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;"Ladybug giggled and rung Chat's bell. "Oh I'm sure you won't, Kitten."/span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;"Chat grinned as his bell remained silent, despite her movement. Ladybug frowned./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;""You have a bell that doesn't even ring?" she asked sceptically./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;""Of course. If it rings when I'm playing, it is distracting, both for me and my audience," Chat replied smoothly./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;""I see," said Ladybug thoughtfully. "Well, we better begin practising, kitty. I have to be home before quarter past nine./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;" /span/p 


	5. A Princess and her Knight

p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU"Chat Noir slipped quietly out of the building and glanced at his watch. Natalie wouldn't miss him for a while yet. His stomach growled. He grimaced, before grinning. There was no one here to admonish him for eating extra food, and besides, he'd used up quite a lot of energy performing and practising with Ladybug. A snack wouldn't hurt./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU"A few minutes later, Marinette glanced up as the bell signalled a customer entering the bakery./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU""Hello!" she said cheerily. "Welcome! What can I get for you today?"/span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU"Chat Noir blinked in surprise. What was Marinette doing here? He lowered his head, hoping she wouldn't recognise him. His eye caught the sign./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU""Dupin-Cheng Bakery" it read, in gorgeous swirling calligraphy. Of course, Marinette's family ran the bakery, it was only natural to find her working here./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU"Meanwhile, Marinette had grown wary of the silent customer who refused to allow her to see his face. He was obviously a tall male and she was about to call her father in, just as a precaution, when he looked up and smiled./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU""Good evening!" he said, and Marinette gasped./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU""Chat Noir!" she exclaimed. Chat looked a little taken back./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU""How do you know me?" he asked and Marinette fumbled to cover up her slip. Chat didn't know she was Ladybug./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU""Oh, I-I was, um, at Akuma tonight and I saw you play!" It was a good lie. Chat wouldn't have been able to see exactly who was in the audience so even if he hadn't seen her, she could just say she was in one of the dark corners of the room./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU""Okay!" Chat seemed willing to accept her hasty explanation and he leaned on the counter casually. "I assume you enjoyed it?" he purred. Inwardly, Marinette sighed. He was really channelling the cat theme./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU""Of course I did! I thought you were great!" she replied. "And I loved Ladybug's playing," she mentioned slyly. She was not disappointed with his reaction./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU""Isn't she the best?" Chat exclaimed. "I love listening to her. And she's a really kind person too! Quite a number of talented musicians are really proud and arrogant but Ladybug is the sweetest! I guess you could say I've really taken emnote/em of her," he grinned./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU"Marinette, delighted by his praise, rolled her eyes nonetheless. "A pun? Really?"/span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU""You better get used to it," Chat replied smugly. "However, you do seem quite emsharp/em for picking it up."/span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU""You're wasting your jokes on someone who doesn't appreciate them, Chat," Marinette said with a grin. "Now, did you come here just for a emchat/em, or to actually buy something. I'm afraid we're closing soon so you should make it quick. We don't allow stray cats in here after hours."/span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU""Was that a pun I heard?" Chat was quick to pounce on her words. "And I am not a stray cat. And what shop closes this early in this city?" Chat piled on the questions. He selected a pastry and Marinette gave it to him, answering his question as them moved to the seating area./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU""On Friday nights, I have to be in bed before ten o'clock," Marinette said, sitting next to him./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU"Chat raised and eyebrow. "Ten o'clock? That seems a harsh curfew Cinderella." He grinned teasingly and bit into the delicious pastry./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU"Marinette rolled her eye, grinning nonetheless. "Ha ha. Very funny. No, I really need my sleep because I have to get up early to help my parents bake before we open."/span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU""Oooh, Cinderella indeed!" Chat carried the joke on, trying to make her laugh. "I don't suppose you have any ugly sisters who force you to do their share of the baking too, hey Princess?" Marinette did laugh this time, and Chat inwardly rejoiced./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU""No, sadly I have no siblings."/span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU""Princess, we grow more similar. Alas, I also have no siblings," Chat said in mock surprise./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU"Marinette's grin widened. "Princess, huh? Is this a new nickname?" she asked, shaking/span her head, a smile gracing her lips. "Whatever. At least it's not something hideous."/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU""Why would I call you something hideous, My Princess?"/span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU""Oh, so now it's changed from 'Princess' to 'My Princess' has is?" she asked, hand on hip./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU""But of course, My Princess. And I am your knight." he said, taking her hand and lightly kissing it./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU"Marinette blushed, pulling her hand away. "Don't get too carried away. A Princess's knight must first prove himself before he is knighted."/span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU""I will try my best to serve you in every possible way, and to prove myself to you, My Princess," Chat said, bowing deeply. To tell the truth, Adrien was surprised at his own boldness. But there was something about Marinette that brought out a different side of him, and he was really enjoying it. Although he had only known her for a few weeks, there seemed to be some sort of connection. Marinette made him feel happy and carefree. She was sweet and funny and always had something interesting to say. She was a little tongue-tied around Adrien but she didn't appear to have a problem with Chat. Perhaps he would visit more frequently to get to know her better. He was intrigued. Chat began to dig his wallet out to pay for the pastry but Marinette stopped him./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU""On the house," she said with a smile. "I really enjoyed your playing so consider it a gift from a fan."/span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU"Chat shook his head in delighted disbelief, touched by her kindness. "Thank you Princess. I will return and see you again soon. But first," he dug into his wallet and pulled out a few notes, tucking them into the tip jar on the counter. He winked at Marinette. Adrien had money to spare for buying things, but he wasn't going to insist on paying and spoil her kind gesture. But he could pay in another way and he wasn't going to just take pastries for nothing because he was a friend./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU"Marinette recognised the gesture for what it was and smiled again. Silly kitten. He was too nice. If he returned she would be pleased to have him. Once again, she was glad that she would be working with him at Akuma. Not that he would know that./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU"Chat began to leave, his tail swinging lazily behind him. "Farewell," he grinned and with a salute, he vanished into the cold night./span/p  
p class="Standard"span lang="EN-AU"Marinette sighed. She couldn't wait to see him again. She loved Adrien but Chat now held a special place in her heart. Silly kitten, she thought fondly as she saw the money he had tipped her. It was a substantial amount and she smiled endearingly out into the night as she locked the bakery door, flipping the closed sign onto the door. Unbeknownst to her, Chat lingered outside in the shadows, watching her as she cleared up. The happiness he was feeling came from her, and somehow he knew there was something connecting them. Instant friendships don't generally just happen, and he and Marinette certainly had something special. Just like he and Ladybug, he though. The knowledge of that kept him warm and happy as he headed off to his dark house. There was something special about them both. And he couldn't wait to see them again./span/p 


End file.
